The Founders Four
by Helenlicious
Summary: Er, read the title. Plenty of romantic complications in store... Review if you want me to continue! Much love to everyone! Thanks!
1. Chapter One

Disclaimer: Anyone idiotic enough to think that I'm idiotic enough to think I own Harry Potter is too idiotic to know that I don't, or, for that matter, to try and sue me. Happy reading!  
  
  
  
  
  
- Chapter One -  
  
  
  
Elaine Gryffindor was outside her home in the north moors, feeding the cattle, as she did every morning, when she heard a strange noise. With a sharp cry, she turned and fled towards the house, screaming.  
  
"Godric! Godric! Someone's coming!" A tall, handsome boy appeared in the doorway of their small cottage, rubbing his eyes sleepily.  
  
"What is it this time, Mother?" he asked. Elaine was a terribly nervous woman, shyer than a mouse. Well, rather, like a mouse around a cat. She hardly talked to anyone besides Godric.  
  
"Someone's coming!" repeated Elaine. "Quick, inside the house!" Hastily, she dragged him inside, and as the sound of the horses came nearer and nearer. She was scuffling around in the corner of the darkened cottage, looking for something. Soon, she appeared again, holding a bundle of odd- looking clothes, which she threw at him. "Put these on!" she snapped. Godric shrugged and complied. Elaine was already wearing hers; a strange brown thing that looked a bit like a cloak. Godric hated these clothes; his were strange and uncomfortably tight, especially around the legs. (A/N: Trousers, you idiot! That's not sexual innuendo!) But Mother always made him wear them when strangers came to the house.  
  
The horses stopped, just as Elaine pushed Godric out of the door. He knew what to do.  
  
"Hello!" he called. There was a man sitting on the seat of a cart, driving the horse. He looked friendly enough, as most people who came through these parts did. Godric always wondered why his mother was so afraid of people. "What brings you to this area?" Godric asked. Then he noticed that the man looked worried.  
  
"It's my daughter," he replied. "We have been travelling for some time. Our horse is new, and it's a bit temperamental, you see. It kicked her quite hard, in the gut. Have you a mother?" he demanded. Just then, Elaine stepped through the door. She had been listening to the whole conversation, and though she was shy, she also had a kind heart.  
  
"I can take care of her," she said, not meeting the man's eyes. "Bring her in to the house. Go put the horse up." The last sentence was directed at Godric, who did as he was told. The man had said that the horse was temperamental, but Godric hardly noticed. He had no fear of any animal.  
  
When he returned to the house, the girl was lying in his bed. He could not see her, but he was curious, as anyone would be. He had never met any girls before, and knew nothing of the world of romance and attraction.  
  
His mother was looking uncomfortable.  
  
"Please . . . I can help her, but it would be easier if you left," she mumbled. The man was clutching his daughter's hand tightly.  
  
"No!" he protested. "I won't leave her." Elaine looked stumped. She obviously wanted the man to leave.  
  
"Well," she began, looking embarrassed. "I don't think your daughter wouldn't want you to stay. For her own dignity." The man's expression changed completely. He dropped his daughter's hand.  
  
"If you're sure she'll be alright. Hehe, I'll just - leave - then." He backed out of the door, mumbling apologies. Then he stopped in the doorway. "Aren't you going to make your son leave?" he asked. Elaine did not even turn around.  
  
"Godric," she said evenly, "Out." He turned, though still curious to see the girl, and left.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: Short chappy. . . hope you enjoyed! If you want me to continue this story, you must review! Sorry, folks, but we're playing by my rules! Okay, so that's cruel. Sorry. By the way, you just might recognise 'the girl' . . . 


	2. Chapter Two

- Chapter Two -  
  
Godric and the man stood outside the cottage together. There was silence for a few minutes. The man pulled a pipe from his pocket, and a flint box. He began to fiddle with it, but couldn't seem to get it lighted.  
  
"What's that?" asked Godric, interested. The man shoved it quickly in his pocket and turned away, colour rising to his cheeks.  
  
"Just something I use to light my pipe. But it doesn't seem to be working today. Must be the weather . . ." he trailed off, and there was another silence. Godric was thinking how easily he would be able to light it with his wand. His wand had previously belonged to his father, so it wasn't a perfect match, but it would do. But magic was forbidden around strangers. His mother had drilled that into his head at an early age . . .  
  
~Flashback~  
  
"No magic around strangers, dear," Elaine was saying firmly. Little Godric pouted.  
  
"Why not?" he whined. Elaine sighed.  
  
"Not everyone is like us. They have other ways of doing things. Ways that are much harder, but I don't suppose they can help it. When anyone strange comes by, we have to make sure that we act just the same as them. Wear clothes like theirs and such."  
  
"Who cares if we're different?" he demanded.  
  
"They do. They'd get jealous of us, because they have to work very hard. Even harder than us. Of course, there are plenty of things that we could do with our magic, if we knew how. But we don't." She turned away, as if to end the conversation. But Godric was young, and he knew no limits.  
  
"What if we could learn how?" he asked. Elaine was, by now, fed up.  
  
"We don't!" she said sharply. "Now it's your bedtime. Off you go." And he crawled into his bed by the fireside, muttering about how he could beat up anyone who tried to hurt his mother because they were different.  
  
~End of Flashback~  
  
  
  
"So, what's your name?" asked Godric. The silence had become unbearable.  
  
"The name's Tom," he said, extending a hand, which Godric shook politely.  
  
"I'm Godric, and my mother's Elaine," he told Tom.  
  
"Yes, your mother informed me of that. My daughter's name is Rowena." Just as he finished saying this, a voice called out from the house.  
  
"Father! Come quickly!" It was Rowena. "You won't believe it! Elaine is a witch!" This caused an immediate uproar. Elaine came running from the house, he apron strings flying as she screamed.  
  
"Godric! Follow me! We have to get out of here!" She ran into the barns, and emerged a minute later, pulling a lazy cow behind her. She tried to mount it, but in her hurry she slipped off.  
  
Tom, by this time, had recovered from his shock.  
  
"Get up, Madame!" he cried. "We're not trying to hurt you! Goodness sakes, we're magical folks ourselves!" At this, Elaine turned, in utter shock, and then burst into tears.  
  
  
  
A/N: Another short chapter. I just like writing this, and I wanted to put more in! So. . . the girl is Rowena. . . Possibly a Rowena we know? (Well DUH yeah!) I love reviews! They are yummy. Love y'all! 


	3. Chapter Three

- Chapter Three -  
  
The rest of the day passed happily. Elaine couldn't decide whether to laugh or to cry, so she decided to do both at once.  
  
"I haven't seen other wizards since my husband died," she sobbed. "Oh . . . I can hardly believe our luck . . ." she trailed off. Tom looked extremely embarrassed.  
  
"There, there, Madame," he said patting her back gingerly. "There, there."  
  
Godric finally got to meet Rowena. She looked to be about his age; around fourteen. She looked up at him shyly when he entered, and when her blue eyes met his, he felt incredibly strange. It was a feeling he couldn't describe. He looked away quickly, and tried not to stare, but he found himself looking back at her, again, and again, and again.  
  
Elaine had used her knowledge of magic to cure Rowena. She had been just about to put the Obliviate spell on her when she had called her father.  
  
Later that afternoon, Elaine ordered Godric to take Rowena for a walk. She needed exercise, and she wanted to catch up on news of the wizarding world with Tom.  
  
They went outside, and stood a few feet from the door. They glanced at each other, and then looked away again quickly. Tom and his daughter did not seem to be talkative people, but, then again, neither was Godric. He decided that it might be less uncomfortable if they started walking, so he led her away from the house, out onto the moor.  
  
"Where are you and your father going?" he asked finally, to break the silence.  
  
"We travel all around," she replied vaguely, "Selling books." Godric's eyes widened.  
  
"Books?" he asked. The only books he had ever seen were his mother's books of healing spells, which she usually kept hidden away.  
  
"Yes. Can't you read?" she asked.  
  
"Of course I can read!" he snapped back at her. The only memories he had of his father had been of sitting on his knee, as he slowly spelled out words he had scraped on the dirt floor of the cottage.  
  
"I love books," she said dreamily, staring off into space. "Father has all kinds in his cart. He's the cleverest man in the world, too." It was obvious that she idolized him.  
  
"Do you know about transformation?" she asked. Godric shook his head.  
  
"What is it?" he asked. Rowena explained, and then there was a pause. She gave him a sideways glance.  
  
"What do you and your mother use magic for?" she asked, curious.  
  
"Well, mother mostly uses hers to cure illnesses and injuries. She does some cooking with it, but that's about all. I have to use mine to defend us from wild animals. There are all kinds roaming the moors." Rowena looked impressed.  
  
"You fight wild animals?" she gasped. Godric shrugged modestly. It had never really occurred to him that other people might not take it all in a days work to have to save your cowering mother from a large, unruly sheep or the rare stampeding cow. "Haven't you ever gotten hurt?" she asked.  
  
"Yes, once, but mother could fix it." The conversation turned to other things for a while, and then Godric decided that they had better turn back.  
  
It was getting dark, and slowly, the sun was sinking on the edge of the moor, casting a golden light everything. Godric was looking at Rowena, thinking how it made the twisted plaits of her curly chestnut hair shine. She was looking at Godric, thinking how strange and bold and brave it made him look.  
  
They were glad to get back inside the cottage, where the fire made everything cozy and warm as the light danced on the walls. Tom had agreed to stay with them for a few days, 'so Rowena could recover.' It was obvious that she needed no recovering, but in those days, when magic folk met magic folk, it was hard to say goodbye.  
  
After dinner, they all prepared for bed. Tom took his leave, having agreed to sleep in the barn with the cattle. Elaine hovered about, plumping up the pillows on Godric's bed and adding an extra quilt.  
  
"Godric," she said, "You'll be sharing your bed with Rowena tonight. Mind you let her sleep on the side by the fire." Godric's eyes widened. He bit his lip.  
  
"Yes, mother," he mumbled, not knowing exactly how to take the situation. The truth was, he didn't really mind, but he was afraid of what Rowena might think. He shook himself. Why should he care what Rowena thought?  
  
Rowena was thinking the same thing. Really, she had no objections, but this made them look like they were . . . interested in each other. Not that she was. Was she? Well besides the fact that he's strong, brave, and extremely handsome, besides seeming fairly clever . . . She shut off the thought, reminding herself that once she and her father left, they would probably never meet the Gryffindors again.  
  
Godric and Rowena avoided each other's eyes as they prepared for bed. Elaine was already fast asleep and snoring. Godric noticed that Rowena's nightgown was just almost see-through. He pinched himself, hard, in punishment of his thoughts. Really, this had gone too far.  
  
He crawled into bed on one side, and she got in on the other. They both moved as far away from each other as possible, not wanting to suggest anything that they had been thinking.  
  
"Goodnight, Rowena," he said, stiffly.  
  
"Goodnight, Godric."  
  
A/N: Ooooh! So what d'ya think? Any suggestions? What did you like best? What do you think's going to happen? The point is, review! Fluffy love you all, you fluffkins! 


	4. Chapter Four

- Chapter Four -  
  
Godric, for once, woke up early. Slowly, he opened his eyes, and then shut them again tightly. He must not move. If he did, he would wake Rowena, who, he realized, was the reason that he was so comfortably warm. During the night, they had gradually moved over towards each other, until they came to the position they were in now, in which Rowena had her arms wrapped around him, and his head was snuggled down into her chest.  
  
He tried to keep still, but it was useless. Rowena awoke, and blinked sleepily, forgetting for a moment where she was. Godric thought she looked incredibly cute like that. Then she realized, as he had, that Godric was practically on top of her. Quickly, looking embarrassed, she moved away from him, and Godric reluctantly did the same.  
  
Just at that moment, Elaine woke up with a start, mid-snore. Godric and Rowena closed their eyes and pretended to be asleep as Elaine began to stomp around the cottage, rattling pots and other things as she started breakfast. Then, she went out to feed the cows.  
  
Rowena promptly slid out of bed and moved towards her bundle of robes on the floor. She looked back at Godric, who was unconsciously staring at her. She glared back, daring him to watch her undress. He blushed and turned away.  
  
After breakfast, Elaine ordered Godric to take Rowena on another walk. He was secretly wondering if his mother was trying to get them to - well - like each other. However, he did not dare to say anything to her.  
  
It was a beautiful morning; the sky was a gorgeous blue colour, without a cloud in sight. Godric and Rowena began to talk about magic; that was all they knew they had in common. Apparently, Tom and Rowena had a few connections in the wizarding world.  
  
"There's one family that lives in a horrible bog," she said. "They're very strange people, father tells me. They have a son, who's just a year older than me, but I've never met him. Mother and Father went to his 'showing' when he was born. It's the kind of thing rich families do."  
  
"Where is your mother?" asked Godric curiously. Rowena's eyes filled with tears, and she turned away.  
  
"I don't really want to talk about it," she said in a stifled voice. Godric looked embarrassed. He would have put his arm around her, but he didn't think it would really be very appropriate.  
  
"So," Rowena finally ventured, after they had been walking in silence for ten minutes. "Um, I just wanted to thank you and your mother for taking care of me. Because my father said that we would probably have to move on soon." Godric looked shocked.  
  
"Already?" he choked, "When?"  
  
"Well, you know," she replied, trying to keep her voice light, "business and all. We'll probably be going two days from now. We'll have to leave in the morning early."  
  
"Yes, that's right," said Godric, desperate to keep the conversation going without saying or doing anything stupid, "The nearest inn is twenty miles away."  
  
"We should go back now," said Godric quietly. He didn't feel like talking anymore just now, and it seemed that neither did Rowena.  
  
  
  
A/N: Did you like it? Do you want more? Or do you want lots more? The chapter are short, that's just so that I'll be able to finish one in half an hour or so. When I've finished writing the whole thing, I might condense them. Anyway, my dear fluffy readers, you must pay me for my hard work, by REVIEWING! Press the little button at the bottom of the page, and if all you want to say is 'I read you're story,' then I don't give B.S. because it's still a review.  
  
Oh, and thanks to everyone who's already review. I love you! (As reviewers and nothing else.) 


	5. Chapter Five

-Chapter Five-  
  
A/N: Apologies! I just haven't been inspired! I want you to know that my style MIGHT change slightly, because my character has changed some. *coughs* (I've been depressed since March, haven't had much motivation.) But THANK YOU to every who reviewed this story, especially Badger and Prissy Gray, you two have really forced me to start writing this again! Love you so much.  
  
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Godric did not sleep that night. While Rowena was still awake, he lay very still and kept his eyes shut. But when her breathing slowed and he was certain that she was far away in sleep, he opened them again. Moonlight was coming in through the little window next to him, giving the room a strange, almost watery transparency. He hated this; he had always hated it. It was in the moonlight that his father had left them. That night was still clear in his mind. Hidden in the shadowy corners, death seemed to wait. And death was always there as a threat to Godric on these nights.  
  
He knew very well that he would not be able to sleep at all. So he slipped quietly from the warm nest of the bed and escaped to the open moor. He did not notice Rowena's eyes open. Outside, the moors stretched all around him. The ground rolled up and down, as if it were the sea. But Godric didn't know that. He had never seen the sea. He had rarely ever even been into any of the nearby villages. Life was simple and protected here in the moors, safe in their snug cottage. Everything fit into a pattern, a pattern that he was used to. And yet... something was different since Rowena had arrived. Everything was sweeter, more beautiful.  
  
Turning back towards the house, he saw her. She was standing outside the doorway of the cottage; a white ghost pearled against shadows of black. She was watching him, though from this distance he couldn't see her eyes. He could only feel her gaze, following him everywhere. Somehow, he couldn't tear his own eyes away from hers. Slowly, without knowing why, he began to step towards her. Rowena, Rowena... That was all he could think. Oh god, she was leaving. She was leaving! She was going to leave him!  
  
"Rowena," he whispered, stepping towards her more quickly. "Rowena!" She stepped towards him, her pale feet barely brushing the ground, and placed a finger over his lips'  
  
"I know," she said softly. "But don't speak." Rowena's heart wrenched as she looked into his pain filled eyes.  
  
"Rowena - I - I must speak. I have to say it, I have to tell you how I feel." She shook her head violently.  
  
"No, Godric, don't say it."  
  
"I must."  
  
"No!" Her voice rose in a shriek.  
  
Inside the cottage, Elaine woke with a start.  
  
A/N: Heh heh, aren't I evil? Mwahahahaha! Very short, but you'll live. Please review, even if you just want to say it's crap. Thank you, come again. 


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